How to plan a small wedding celebration in 2020.
With the current situation with weddings in 2020 and the government guidance changing week-by-week, more and more couples have been inspired to plan small, intimate wedding ceremonies with back-garden receptions. But where do you start? Hopefully this blog post can be of some help.
1- Decide if you’re going to get legally married, and when!
You have a ton of options here, as it currently stands (July 2020) legal ceremonies are taking place in both registry offices and places of worship with restricted numbers of guests. Chat with your partner and decide which is the best route for you.
In England you can have a wonderful celebration with a celebrant, they can make the whole ceremony about you guys and work with you to create a fun, interactive and beautifully personal celebration. (This isn’t currently recognised as a legal marriage here in England though)
2- Find a location for the celebration to take place.
Back garden, beer garden, park garden, kew gardens. It’s totally up to you. Outdoor wedding restrictions are slightly more relaxed than indoor ones so keep that in mind when planning. Ask your neighbours, friends and family if they know of anywhere that would be a good location.
3- Guest list.
Starting on August the 1st, wedding receptions with up to 30 people are allowed. This is the perfect opportunity to have your nearest and dearest with you on the day and not feel obliged to invite great-aunt Florence who you’ve never met.
4- Talk to your suppliers.
With COVID causing havoc on the 2020 wedding season, wedding suppliers are happy to create custom packages for small weddings. For example, talk to a cake-maker for a mini cake or your florist for only a few stems for your table decor. Wedding suppliers would love to get back to work and be creative again! Talk to them about your ideas.
5- Find a way to live stream your wedding.
Get a camera set-up and do your speeches over Zoom. Invite all the people you would have to a larger wedding and celebrate (because you don’t have to pay to feed them all!)
6- Embrace the weirdness of it all.
Much like the beautiful image of the Queen, Prince Phillip, Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi with the 2m socially distanced family formal, remember that you’re getting married at the weirdest time most of us have ever lived through. Try and embrace it rather than fight against it. It’s kind of an amazing time in history that despite the worldwide pandemic, your love is winning.
Suppliers:
Flowers: https://www.minouxflowers.co.uk
Stationary: https://www.sundownpaper.co.uk
Furniture and Styling: https://www.hallandcoeventdesign.co.uk